Fertilizers were welcomed with open arms, for they immediately increased the yield of crops. But their recurrent use has done an irreparable damage to the environment. Excess use of chemical fertilizers has led to the pollution and contamination of the soil, has polluted water basins, destroyed micro-organisms and friendly insects, making the crop more prone to diseases and reduced soil fertility. More and more farmers are now looking for more eco-friendly options. Bio-fertilizers have, to some extent provided an answer to the soil contamination voes.

Bio-fertilizers are eco-friendly fertilizers, which are being used to improve the quality and fertility of the soil. Bio-fertilizers are made from biological wastes and they do not contain any chemicals. They are beneficial to the soil, as they enrich the soil with micro-organisms that help in producing organic nutrients, which in turn help the soil to fight diseases. They therefore enrich the the nutrient quality of the soil. They also restore the depleted nutrients of the soil.

The main sources of bio-fertilizers are bacteria, fungi and cynobacteria (blue-green algae). Plants have a special relationship with bacteria and fungi. They provide the plant with nutrition, resistance against diseases and the ability to combat worst climatic conditions.

Bio-fertilizers are being viewed as the future of fertilizers, as they have the ability to solve the problems of salinity of the soil, chemical-run offs from the fields. They, therefore, ensure the well being of the nutrients present in the soil, therefore making the soil more fertile with time.

Bio-fertilizers.... A Portfolio

Biocompost: It is a kind of organic fertilizer, which is prepared from the waste of the sugar industry. The waste is decomposed using a number of human and plants friendly bacteria and Fungi. Biocompost consists of nitrogen, phosphate solubilizing bacteria and plenty of useful fungi like the decomposing fungi. This biofertilizer helps the farmers to increase soil fertility and thereby increase the yield of the crops

Vermi Compost: It is also an organic fertilizer containing nitrogen phosphorus, potassium, sulphur, organic carbon, sulfur, hormones, enzymes, etc. If used over a period of time, the soil becomes extremely fertile and all the lost nutrients are restored back to the turf and the soil remains fertile

Phospho: This is also a kind of bio-fertilizer, which releases insoluble phosphorous in the soil, making it more fertile

Rhizo: It is a bacterial, which induces nitrogen fixing nodules on the roots of vegetables like peas, beans, etc., thereby, playing an important role in agriculture

Azotobactor: Nitrogen plays an extremely important role in plant growth. Azotobactor improves the quantity of atmospheric nitrogen in the soil and makes it available to the plants. It also shields the roots from other pathogens existing in the soil

Trichoderma: It is an eco-friendly fertilizer, which acts as a biocontrol agent and is hyper parasitic against different pathogens in the field

Composter: A composter breaks down all organic substances like cattle waste, dead leaves, etc. present in the soil and thereby increase the productivity of the soil

Tricho-Card: It is an effective bio-fertilizer, which is an effective destroyer of eggs of many rodents, which eat plants and leaves. It is effective when used for many plants namely sugarcane, cotton, brinjal, corn, jawar, paddy apple, etc.

Advantages of Using Bio-Fertilizers

Bio-fertilizers are becoming a rage, considering the irreparable damage that the chemical fertilizers are causing to the soil. Some of the advantages associated with bio-fertilizers include:

The first and the most important advantage of using bio-fertilizers is that they are environment friendly, unlike chemical fertilizers that damage the environment

They are comparatively low on cost inputs and are light on the pockets of the farmers

Their use leads to soil enrichment and the quality of the soil improves with time

Though they do not show immediate results, but the results shown over time are extremely spectacular

Microorganisms convert complex organic materail into simple compounds, so that the plant can easily take up the nutrients

These fertilizers harness atmospheric nitrogen and make it directly available to the plants

They increase the phosphorous content of the soil by solubilising and releasing unavailable phosphorous

Bio-fertilizers improve root proliferation due to the release of growth promoting hormones